I’m looking for some advice. A friend of mine has recently given me a vintage Angénieux 50mm f/1.5 type S5, he’s not particularly interested in cameras but he just came across it and after googling the lens, realised it must be of some worth, and so passed it to me.

As far as I can tell, the lens is genuine (it came from a genuine source too), however it is worn, and has a nasty black spot on the glass. I have no idea if it works. I have a feeling the lens has been dismantled at some point because the numbers on each fixed ring don’t align with images I’ve found on Google, which suggest the rings were separated at one point and put back in a different orientation.

I’m happy to upload pictures of the lens if needs be, but I’m wondering what I should do with it? How much is it worth? Is it worth selling? Is it worth refurbishing and using (I currently own a Canon 600d)? Who can I speak to validate that the lens is in fact authentic? Would it be more of an amicable solution to sell the lens, give the ‘owner’ half, and then put the other half towards a nice L Series or something similar? If I wanted to sell it, what would the best channel be?

If in full working order they are worth a fortune, however you need to try it on a leica m mount camera to be able to verify this. You could take it into a shop that knows what they are talking about for them to check it out. Greys of westminister in London are the only people i have dealt with in the past when ive needed vintage camera equipment servicing/repairing.

If in full working order they are worth a fortune, however you need to try it on a leica m mount camera to be able to verify this. You could take it into a shop that knows what they are talking about for them to check it out. Greys of westminister in London are the only people i have dealt with in the past when ive needed vintage camera equipment servicing/repairing.

Thanks for that. I need to clarify that it is in fact genuine (I have no reason to believe otherwise, but it would be nice to see it vetted by a reputable dealer) and find out how much it would cost to bring it back to its full working condition. It’s may be worthwhile spending £X now, if it will yield £XXX when I sell it.